Book Presentation: The Armenian Legionnaires: Sacrifice and Betrayal in World War I

October 10, 2018 @ 4:30 pm - 6:00 pm

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Not content with watching World War I silently from the sidelines, a large number of Armenian volunteers joined the French Foreign Legion. They were trained in Cyprus and fought extensively in Palestine and Cilicia.

Using illustrations from the more than 150 photographs in The Armenian Legionnaires, Susan Pattie will discuss the motivations and dreams of the Armenian Legionnaires and their ultimate betrayal as the French and the British shifted priorities. Complete with eyewitness accounts, letters and photographs, this book provides an insight into relations between the Great Powers through the lens of a small, vulnerable people caught in a war that was not their own, but which had already destroyed their known world.

About the Speaker:

Susan Pattie is an Honorary Senior Research Associate at University College London and former Director of the Armenian Institute in London. Currently leader of the Pilot Project of the Armenian Diaspora Survey, funded by the Gulbenkian Foundation. DC., she holds a PhD in Anthropology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

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About AUA

The American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia. Founded in 1991, AUA is affiliated with the University of California. Through teaching, research, and public service, AUA serves Armenia and the region by supplying high-quality, graduate and undergraduate education, encouraging civic engagement, and promoting democratic values.